Duets is more than just 'cruisin', it's a fun ride.

First and foremost, let me state for the record that I enjoyed this movie.

This is a lightweight movie that doesn’t take a lot of effort to keep up with, just perfect for those times when you feel like taking time out.


The movie is pretty basic really. It revolves around the fortunes and misfortunes of three unlikely couples all with one thing in common. They are all off to win the $5000 prize money in a karaoke competition in Omaha, Nebraska.

Couple number one ~

Meet Liv (Gwyneth Paltrow) and her dad Rick Dean ( Huey Lewis)

Rick is a karaoke hustler ~ yeah, I didn’t think there was such a thing either but heck, what do I know.
I have heard of poker hustlers and pool hustlers but never, ever, have I heard of a karaoke hustler but live and learn.

Rick is a karaoke hustler. He makes a living entering karaoke competitions and making side bets with the punters. Hey, I know of worse ways to make a living, especially if you are Huey Lewis but everybody thinks you are some nobody called Rick Dean.
He is busy at work hustling when we meet him, after work he heads home to his seedy motel room where he gets a message that someone from his past has died.

He heads to Las Vegas to attend the funeral.


This is where he meets his grown daughter Liv, I guess she must be somewhere around 18 - 20 yrs old.

Liv was raised by her mother ( a Las Vegas showgirl) and she doesn’t know her father at all as he has had no contact with Liv or her mother for years.
Liv is delighted to re-establish contact with her father again, she thought she was all alone in the world but now her daddy has returned to look after her and the world couldn’t be a better place.
She is a naïve creature.

Rick is in for a shock once he realises Liv looking to him for guidance. He doesn’t want to suddenly be lumbered with parental responsibilies at this late stage and gee whizz, the kid is all grown and all. He leaves town but Liv follows and shadows him like a puppy dog.

Couple number two ~

Meet Reggie ( Andre Braugher ) and Todd (Paul Giamatti)

We first meet Todd ~ bad guy trapped in a good guys life.

It is pretty clear within the first minute of meeting Todd that he is stressed out. His daily routine is hectic, hectic, hectic. In and out if airports flying from meeting to meeting and living out of a suitcase in hotel after hotel. This particular day he has rushed into a conference room, addressed the meeting and when he is halfway through, realises he must be in the wrong room.
Wrong… he is in the right room in the right hotel, just in the wrong city !

He cracks up there and then and catches a flight home. His kids barely acknowledge him when he gets home, his wife looks up briefly from the computer to ask him why he’s home early.

He picks up his jacket and heads to the door…
“Where are you going” she asks.
“Out to get cigarettes” he replies
“But you don’t smoke “ she says, giving him a queer look before turning her attention back to the computer again.

He’s gone.

He hits a bar and ends up cutting loose on the karaoke stage. He’s enjoying himself and dammit, it feels great.

Reggie is my favourite character ~ good guy trapped in a bad guys life.

Reggie is hitching his way home to Chicago after just being released from jail. He is given a ride by a trucker and ends up robbing him ~ he would like to go straight but doesn’t know how. He is on the road in the middle of Utah somewhere when a crazy man skids to a stop and gives him a lift.

Reggie’e not too sure about getting in the car with Todd, he looks kinder wild and has a crazy look in his eye but it’s the only ride on offer so in he gets.

This unlikely duo are the off the wall element which kept this movie interesting.

~ Give their story to someone like Quentin Tarrentino and we may have a Great movie to write about.~

Couple number three~

Meet Billy (Scott Speedman) and Suzi ( Maria Bello)

Billy is happy with his life, he drives a cab for a living which he part owns with his business partner. He has a little woman waiting at home and life couldn’t be sweeter.

One day he gets home early and yup, you guessed it, found his little woman and trusty business partner doing the dirty on him.
Well dear sweet sensitive Billy is off, running from his life. He hits the road and heads off anywhere, somewhere, nowhere.

He meets up with Suzi who sees Billy as someone she can use. Suzi is a small town girl who has learnt to use her sexuality to get everything she wants. What she wants is a ride to California where she dreams she will make it big in the recording industry.

Billy has a car ~ she needs a ride, Billies going nowhere ~ she’s going somewhere, perfect.

CAST.

I’m not sure and hit me if I’m wrong but can Gwyneth Paltrow really act?

I haven’t seen enough of her to decide but what I have seen doesn’t convince me.

No doubt about her singing though.

I think even Huey Lewis gave a better performance and I know he isn’t known for his acting skills.
Who knew he could act, I thought we had seen the last of him back in the 80’s when he had a hit with that atrocious song ‘It’s Hip to be Square’ ~ good grief.

Never mind, all is forgiven because I think he did a great job as Rick and I even enjoyed his singing.

My favourite character was Reggie, I have been a huge Andre Braugher fan form his days as detective Frank Pembelton (Homicide: Life on the Street). Man he can sing too, I was somewhat disappointed to discover that his voice was enhanced with high tech mixing adding the voice of Arnold McCuller to help with the high notes, but he can still belt out a good song.



Paul Giamatti did a great job with the role of Todd, madman on a bender. He played the role with relish and was a totally believable nutter, He deserves “best actor of this movie” award for this one.

The other two characters were pretty insignificant in my book.

BEST LINE

~ When the trucker asks Reggie what he “did time for?” Reggie replies “ an error of judgement”.

MOVIE HIGHLIGHT .

~ It has to be the song Reggie and Todd belt out to win a competition for $50 in a small town karaoke bar. These two sing “Try a little Tenderness” like you have never heard it sung before, it’s brilliant and very memorable and gave me warm fuzzies.

RECOMMENDED?

~ Well I enjoyed it but maybe I was in the right mood for it. I have trouble staying “with” movies right till the end, doesn’t happen often but it happened with this one.

~ It won't make my top 20 list but it might sneak into my top 100, somewhere in the 90's.

RATING?

6/10

BIGGEST REGRET

~ That Tarrentino didn’t get to play with this script.